An algorithm related to an overly-optimized penalty had been rumored for some time before the release of Penguin. Brafton first reported mention of the algorithm in March 2012 when Matt Cutts, distinguished engineer at Google, said that overly SEO’d websites were likely to be the company’s next target. At this time, the Google Panda algorithm was still the focus of most marketers looking to maintain a strong presence in search. The rollout of Google Penguin was a reminder for companies to shift their focus to content as part of a well-rounded user experience and as a means of naturally cultivating inbound links.

Penguin targets

Among the theorized practices that Google has targeted with Penguin are:

keyword stuffing

over-use of the same keywords for internal site links

paid linking schemes

link building from irrelevant (as opposed to niche) sites

development of shallow inbound links rooted in the same keyword

These practices are used by countless websites to manipulate PageRank and give the appearance of high-quality content. However, they are simply exploiting SEO best practices to improve their search ranking without providing users a quality experience.

Penguin and Google’s battle against over optimization

As such, many websites turned to less than ethical practices to leverage search’s growth. The rollout of Google Panda in February 2011 was among the first steps Google took to bring quality content and websites to users. The next step was Penguin, which will help Google punish sites that got around Panda by generating content with excessive keyword use and linking schemes that fooled search crawlers.

Moreover, the algorithm targets sites using paid links. Inorganic linking often comes from sites of a low-quality.

Penguin-proofing a website

Like other search updates, the easiest way to avoid penalty with Penguin is to focus on creating quality content that includes organic keyword use and merits inbound links. Using social media to further distribute website pages and resources among relevant audiences will also build more visibility for a brand. It’s also advised that sites request spammy inbound links be removed from external websites.

Any practices that Google views as attempting to trick its crawler or exploit algorithms will be be penalized. As the company continues to improve Penguin, any sites that actively look to take advantage of these shifts will be penalized in the future.

Penguin resources

Marketers looking to learn more about Penguin should check out these resources: